I graduated from Malone University in 2013 with a Bachelor's degree in Exercise Science and a minor in Community Health Education. I'm a certified personal trainer through the American College of Sports Medicine, Functional Movement Screen Certified and a Pre/Postnatal Performance Training Specialist through PROnatal Fitness. I have worked with clients of varying ages and abilities and in multiple facilities, and worked in both therapy and clinical settings as well as fitness facilities. Since 2013 I've been a Trainer at Intelligent Fitness, LLC, the only private, medical fitness facility in the area. At Intelligent Fitness, I am the lead trainer for medical fitness and help to guide clients to a life of exceptional health and wellness regardless of their starting point. I work with clients who need corrective exercise as I utilize my Functional Movement Screen Certification to bring clients to an injury free and pain free life. In addition to specializing in race training and preparation as I use my experience from nearly two decades of competitive running, I also work with pre & postnatal women to help them workout safely during and after pregnancy. MY 12-WEEK REMOTE PROGRAM, TOUGH AS A MOTHER, IS DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY FOR THE POSTPARTUM MOM AND IS AVAILABLE ON THE TRAINERIZE APP TO PURCHASE. SEE BELOW FOR MORE DETAILS.

Copy/paste the link here to purchase, or scroll down for more information: https://www.trainerize.me/checkout/intelligentfitness/Danielle.Wirick?planID=135918

*Learn why I developed my Tough as a Mother - Postpartum Return to Exercise Program and SCROLL DOWN FOR MORE DETAILS ABOUT THE PROGRAM & HOW TO GET STARTED!

There is no way to capture all that it means to transition from life before becoming a mother to life after. There are beautiful, wonderful moments that also come with times of challenge that are more than you can prepare for. People that know me would think that I was fully prepared for what my fitness routine would look like postpartum. I thought I knew what to expect, but there were aspects of postpartum that made that much more difficult than I imagined. I want to share a bit about this journey of mine to encourage moms, especially for those struggling with postpartum return to exercise, in whatever capacity that may be. And to let them know that this is the very reason I created my postpartum-return-to-exercise program, called Tough as a Mother.

Somewhere in the months of the newborn days and nights that felt like one long continuous day, I remember reading that when a baby is born, not just one new life enters the world but two, the life of the child and the life of a mother. I found that to be profound. It brought to the surface what I felt inside, that I was someone new too, and I was trying to get used to this new me. For me, as I’m sure many new moms experience, it was a complete shift in lifestyle and mentality. Throughout most of my life, I was a competitive runner and in recent years had competed five consecutive times in the Boston Marathon. I even ran the last one nearly 10 weeks pregnant and had all intentions of returning the following year at 5 months postpartum – crazy, I know – to earn my sixth Boston Marathon medal. During my pregnancy, I ran nearly every day and finished my final run the day before I went into labor. People asked if it was uncomfortable, and yes it was, but I was set on maintaining my fitness as best I could throughout my pregnancy in order to have a healthy and “easy” return to fitness after delivery. What I did not expect, however, was just how challenging that would be from every aspect – physically, mentally and emotionally.

After having my sweet baby, I could not have imagined how feeble I would feel. Having been a competitive runner prior to and even staying fit throughout pregnancy, it was hard to find myself asking for help to get out of a chair, feeling sore and weak after a 20-minute gentle walk, or feeling out of breath climbing a flight of stairs. My hospital discharge notes were simply to do my kegels. That seemed like insignificant help in light of how I felt. After giving myself the recommended weeks needed for my body to heal, even with all my knowledge and expertise in exercise science, I felt at a loss of where to begin again. At my six week checkup, I was cleared to exercise and to run and was eager to move, to do anything, to feel more myself again, but I felt exhausted in every way and unsure of where to start. I had a deadline approaching for my marathon that now seemed a small thing in light of taking care of a newborn baby. How was I going to balance it all?

During those early postpartum days, there were challenges that I didn’t quite expect, like finding the time to run and strength train like I used to, feeling the anxiety of being away from a nursing baby who refused a bottle, and expecting so much of myself, but also what felt like so little at the same time. It was so hard not to compare what I was used to doing, with how limited I felt - with my time, my energy, and my emotions. I felt a pull to run and feel like my old self, while at the same time a stronger pull to be where I was needed at home. I was trying to build my running mileage back up from nothing to a full marathon in about 3 months time, and as I look back I am amazed at what I was able to accomplish during that time period. Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, I was unable to compete in the 2020 Boston Marathon, which I think was truly for the best, though at the time it was a difficult thing to give up. After my marathon was canceled, I felt aimless. I was trying to find a rhythm, a reason to run and strength train because competing had always been my motivation before. But somewhere along the way, I came to find pure joy and freedom in simply enjoying movement, of any kind. Some days, long family hikes took the place of a long run; I did yoga when the weather wouldn’t cooperate to take my daughter for a stroller run or I simply didn’t feel up to it; I worked out in the living room making silly faces and taking breaks as needed to soothe a fussy baby; I took days off completely when the exhaustion was overwhelming; and the miles I used to spend running hard, long or fast became companion runs with my little sidekick. We eventually began to find our groove, and at the same time I was learning to find grace for myself, realizing this was a new season in many ways, and that there is truly no comparison necessary.

As soon as I arrived home from the hospital after giving birth, I quickly realized that there was a critical need for postpartum care and guidance that was highly lacking for many women. I felt it deeply in my postpartum return to exercise journey. And that is the main reason I am so eager to provide moms with a program that can safely bring them back to a place where they can return, rebuild and rise! Through my understanding of the body’s biomechanics, research in postpartum return to exercise, and my own experience, I was able to put together my Tough as a Mother program to help moms feel more comfortable with their postpartum fitness journey, whatever their starting point!

Trainer at: Intelligent Fitness